The Hutch–Kinahan feud is a major ongoing feud between two criminal organisations in Ireland that has resulted in the deaths of eighteen people, the majority of which have been perpetrated by the Kinahan family. The Hutch gang, led by Gerry Hutch, and the Kinahan Family, led by Daniel Kinahan, are the main participants.
The feud has taken the form of a large number of attacks, mostly shootings, on people associated with the Hutch and Kinahan gangs (though some have been cases of mistaken identity). Most attacks have been in Dublin, a few elsewhere in Ireland, and some in Spain—including the murder of Gary Hutch, which sparked off the feud.
Feud There was a shooting in 2014, but it is generally considered that the feud began in 2015, when Gary Hutch was murdered in Marbella, Spain, and escalated after the February 2016 Dublin hotel attack.
In 2016, just after the Regency Hotel attack, a Special Crime Task Force was created within the national Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau (DOCB) to combat crime gangs, especially the Kinahan and Hutch gangs. Manned by at least 10 gardaí and three sergeants, the task force was scheduled to close in 2021; however, despite at least 18 people being killed in the feud, their success in preventing 50 other murder attempts means it will continue operating.
As of June 2018, Gardaí have seized 456 firearms, €2.2 million in cash, and €64 million worth of drugs in their efforts to tackle the feud. Commentators have noted that the feud highlights the difficulty An Garda Síochána have with policing Irish gangs with transnational structures.
Timeline of events
2014 Shooting of Jamie Moore – August On 4 August 2014, ex-boxer Jamie Moore was training Matthew Macklin at Macklin's Gym Marbella in Marbella, Spain which Macklin had set up with Daniel Kinahan. Moore was shot twice in the leg, in a case of mistaken identity. Sources differ on whether the intended victim was Gary Hutch or Daniel Kinahan. Moore recovered from the shooting.
2015 Murder of Gary Hutch – September The murder of Gary Hutch at approximately 11:30 a.m. on 24 September 2015 initiated the ongoing feud. Gary Hutch, who was 34 years old at the time of his death, was shot dead at an apartment complex in the Miraflores neighbourhood of Marbella, Spain. Originally from Champions Avenue in Dublin's city centre, Gary was the nephew of Gerry "the Monk" Hutch, the leader of the Hutch crime syndicate. At the time of his death, Gary was a "well-known" criminal in Dublin, who had previously been convicted of armed robbery. After his release from prison he moved to Spain, where had lived for the eight years prior to his death. Gary, unarmed at the time of his killing, is reported have pleaded for his life before being shot by his killer.
Gary Hutch had been working closely with Daniel Kinahan for some time before his death. By 2014, however, he was suspected as being an informant for the Spanish police, though this would posthumously be discovered to have been a false allegation. He also tried to shoot a senior Kinahan gang member. Allegedly, Gerry Hutch had organised with Daniel Kinahan for a close associate of Gerry's to be shot in a "punishment shooting", as compensation for Gary's supposed role as an informant. Patrick Hutch, Gary's brother, is alleged to have voluntarily been shot in the leg by Daniel Kinahan in an attempt to save his brother's life. €200,000 was also paid to the Kinahan family by Gary Hutch, in exchange for his life. Both deals, however, were reneged upon, and Gary was killed. In 2018, Dubliner James Quinn, a former boxer with a criminal record, was convicted of being involved in the murder by being a lookout and helping the killer to reach and flee the scene. He was also found guilty of a second charge of illegal weapons possession. The state prosecutor called on the judge to jail Quinn for a total of 28 years—25 for the murder and 3 for the weapons possession charges. A life sentence was ruled out because jurors rejected the prosecution's claims that Quinn was a member of a criminal organisation despite the prosecution saying the killing was part of the Kinahan-Hutch feud. The jury also found that it had not been proven that Quinn had been paid for the murder. Quinn is a nephew of Martin Foley, a criminal known as "the Viper" who was an associate of Martin Cahill. He had worked as an enforcer for drug dealers and developed strong links with the Kinahans.
Attack on Derek Hutch – October On 9 October 2015, two weeks after Gary Hutch was murdered, his younger brother Derek "Del Boy" Hutch was stabbed while serving a sentence for murder in Mountjoy prison. A €10,000 bounty had been put on him by Christy Kinahan. He survived the attack.
Murder of Darren Kearns – December On 30 December, Darren Kearns, an associate of the Hutches, was shot dead in front of his wife shortly after he left the Phoenix Chinese restaurant on Blackhorse Avenue He had convictions for drug dealing and spent time in prison. It is thought that Kearns and another gang member are responsible for a botched attempt on the lives of Kinahan gang members. No-one has been charged with the murder as of October 2021.
2016 2016 was the bloodiest year of the feud, with ten people being killed that year, six of whom were killed in the first six months of the year. Of the dead, six were associated with the Hutch gang, one with the Kinahans, and two were innocent men who were killed in cases of mistaken identity.
Regency Hotel attack, February
On 5 February 2016, a WBO boxing match for the European Lightweight title between Jamie Kavanagh and Antonio João Bento was to take place at the Regency Hotel in Whitehall, Dublin. At the weigh-in, there was an organised armed attack; the match was cancelled after the shooting. There were at least four attackers wearing masks, army style-helmets and flak jackets; two of whom were disguised as members of the Garda Emergency Response Unit and armed with AK-47s. An associate of the Kinahan cartel, David Byrne, was shot dead; security sources said that the gang had intended to kill others. Two men were injured and taken to the Mater Private Hospital and Beaumont Hospital. It is believed that Daniel Kinahan, the son of Christy Kinahan, was the intended target, but he had left early. After the attack, security camera recordings suggested that six people had been involved, including a man disguised as a woman. The attackers escaped in a Ford Transit van which was later found burnt-out. On 18 May 2016, Patrick Hutch, the brother of Gary Hutch, was charged at the Criminal Courts of Justice with the murder of David Byrne. His trial for murder and possession of firearms was later set for January 2018 at the non-jury Special Criminal Court; he was denied bail. The trial of Patrick Hutch at the Criminal Courts of Justice for the murder of David Byrne collapsed on 20 February 2019, after the suicide of lead investigator, Detective Superintendent Colm Fox. An investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of the Superintendent was launched by the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission. In October 2020 a 26-year-old Hutch gang member was arrested with a Coolock criminal when Garda detectives halted an alleged drugs handover in which over three kilos of cannabis were seized. The Kinahan cartel reportedly believe he was involved in the Regency Hotel attack. In August 2021 Gerry Hutch was arrested in Spain on a European Arrest Warrant in connection with the shooting. At a trial in Ireland in March/April 2023, Gerry Hutch was acquitted, being found not guilty of the murder. Paul Murphy and Jason Bonney were found guilty of facilitating the murder of Byrne.
Murder of Eddie Hutch Snr – February Three days after the Regency attack, Eddie Hutch Snr was killed at his home on 8 February 2016. He was an uncle of Gary Hutch. The motive for his death is suspected to be revenge for the death of David Byrne. The investigation into the murder is still ongoing as of 2022.
Murder of Vincent Ryan – February On 29 February, Vincent Ryan was shot dead while sitting in his car outside his partner's home in Finglas on 29 February 2016. A brother of Real IRA leader Alan Ryan, Vincent was murdered by members of the Kinahan gang, though sources differ on whether or not this was related to the Hutch-Kinahan conflict. Two men, Jeffrey Morrow and Paul O'Beirne, who pleaded guilty to assisting a criminal organisation in the murder. were sentenced to 11 and 9 years for the killing of Ryan,
Murder of Noel Duggan – March On 23 March, Noel "Kingsize" Duggan, a friend of Gerry Hutch, was shot dead while sitting in his car outside his home in Ratoath, County Meath on 23 March 2016. The investigation is ongoing as of 2023.
Murder of Martin O'Rourke – April Martin O'Rourke was shot dead on 14 April on Lower Sheriff Street, Dublin in a case of mistaken identity. He had no known criminal connections. Gardaí believe Glen Clarke was responsible for the shooting. Clarke was found dead in a stolen car in Ireland on 2 December 2016, shot through the head.
Murder of Michael Barr – April Michael Barr was shot dead on 25 April 2016, in the Sunset House in Summerhill, Dublin. The Garda Síochána suspect he was killed by the Kinahan gang because of involvement in the Regency Hotel attack. He had dissident republican links and is understood to have provided the weaponry involved in the attack. Eamonn Cumberton was sentenced to life in prison for the killing of Barr.
Murder of Gareth Hutch – May On 24 May, Gareth Hutch was fatally shot by two attackers in the carpark of the Avondale House flats complex where he lived. He was a minor figure in the criminal world. In November 2018 the Special Criminal Court found Johnathan Keogh, his sister Regina Keogh and Thomas Fox guilty of the murder. All three were sentenced to life imprisonment.
Murder of David Douglas – July David Douglas was fatally shot outside a shop he ran with his wife in Bridgefoot Street, Dublin 8, on 1 July. He had survived being shot the previous November. Lee Canavan was found guilty of the Douglas murder in 2021.
Murder of Trevor O'Neill – August Trevor O'Neill, a Dublin City Council worker from Drimnagh was killed in a case of mistaken identity in Costa de la Calma, near Magaluf, on 17 August 2016 He was shot five times in front of his family. Gardaí believe that he was mistaken for a member of the Hutch family by the Kinahan gang. Glen Clarke, believed to be O'Neill's killer was found dead in a stolen car in Ireland on 2 December 2016, shot through the head.
Murder of Noel Kirwan – December
Noel "Duck Egg" Kirwan, a close associate of Gerry Hutch, was shot dead in front of his partner outside his house in Ronanstown in west Dublin on 22 December 2016. It is believed he was killed simply because of his association with Hutch, as he was photographed talking to him at Eddie Hutch's funeral in February 2016.
On 18 June, two men in their thirties were arrested by armed members of the Garda Emergency Response Unit and Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau on the Naas Dual carriageway. A Glock 9mm semi-automatic handgun was found in one man's car. Both were linked to the Kinahan gang; one was a close associate of David Byrne. Gardaí believe they were planning to shoot someone.
In December 2018 Jason Keating was sentenced to ten years for helping in the murder of Noel Kirwan. Keating was initially charged with the murder, but that charge was dropped when he admitted taking part in the activities of a criminal organisation and helping them to murder Noel Kirwan. Keating was connected to the crime by CCTV, buying the "burner" phone, bringing the killer to and from the scene, was in contact with the person tracking the car and conveyed that information to the killer.